Friday, December 21, 2007

I-35: Highway To...Heaven?

There are no fundie crazies who are crazier than Texas fundie crazies. That's why commuters in the Dallas area were recently treated to the spectacle of a bunch of them blessing I-35.

the small contingent of churchgoers believe that Interstate 35, a sprawling highway running from Texas to Minnesota, is specifically mentioned in the Book of Isaiah, chapter 35.

"A highway shall be there, and a road," reads a portion of the chapter's verse eight, "and it shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it..."

But if I-35 is indeed the place, some Christians believe there's a lot of work to be done before the road can fulfill it's saintly destiny, according to CNN's Gary Tuchman, who was on the scene in Texas as believers launched an effort to pray for the road.

"Churchgoers in all six states recently finished 35 days of praying alongside Interstate 35, but the prayers are still continuing," reports Tuchman. "Some of the faithful believe that in order to fulfill the prophecy of I-35 being the 'holy' highway, it needs some intensive prayer first. So we watched as about 25 fervent and enthusiastic Christians prayed on the the interstate's shoulder in Dallas."

Their prayers go out for safer neighborhoods, "more godliness" and also in hopes that businesses lining the highway, including strip clubs and other "unclean" establishments, might clean up their act.

Tuchman says the faithful also point to "a link between the area near this highway and tragedies that have happened in history, such as the bridge collapse on I-35 in Minneapolis last August and the assassination of JFK 44 years ago near I-35 in Dallas."

"We just want to say 'wow, why would this happen on one highway,'" one of the prayer campaign's organizers, Cindy Jacobs, told CNN. "Let's pray that there be safety for everyone on these highways."

Cindy Jacobs and her husband Mike run Generals International, a prophetic group of evangelistas based in Red Oak, Texas. Their website decsribes Cindy as:

a respected prophet who travels the world ministering not only to crowds of people, but to heads of nations. Perhaps her greatest ministry is to world influencers who seek her prophetic advice.

Her first calling is, and always will be, prophetic intercession. Ever since the Lord called her with the scripture, “Ask of me the nations for your inheritance, and the ends of the world for your possession,” she has taken that calling seriously.

Cindy has forseen revival coming to the Latter-day Saints Temple in Salt Lake City and to Freemasons within the Southern Baptist Convention. Her husband is a "former business analyst...commissioned by God to bring unity and order to the body of Christ" who "carries an anointing to impart the power of the Holy Spirit." They are, of course, fierce believers in Chuck Pierce's "Glory of Zion" apocalyptic vision of mid-East war.

Cindy and Mike believe that the Summer's bad weather across the Midwest is God's work.

It is pouring rain in Texas, Oklahoma and across portions of the Midwest. CNN reports, “Storms dumped up to 18 inches of rain on parts of central Texas, flooding several towns and stranding dozens of people on rooftops, cars and in trees.”

The Holy Spirit has spoken through His prophets, and He is releasing a new cleansing move of holiness across the face of the earth. Last June, through two prophesies given in Washington DC, the word came that God is "Washing Washington". This is now extending all along the I-35 corridor.

If these people were pagan or new-agers, talking about triple Goddesses or chakras, no-one would take them the least bit seriously. But, because they're evangelistas in Texas, they get endorsed by Pat Robertson; are members of the Charismatic Leadership Council of influential evangelist leaders; get slots on religious TV channels broadcasting to just about every nation on Earth and even get time on CNN. They're actually influential, not ridiculed.